Thanks so much for all the suggestions and the support yesterday. They really helped. Well, the one person who emailed me and said this was a good time to practice detachment – let’s say I was less gracious than I should have been! Because I am not detached from my work, especially not in the creation stage. I don’t think artists should be or can be.

I did everything I could without screwing up someone else’s computer – I would have been a lot more adventurous on my own. Heck, I probably would have hacked it apart with an axe looking for the thing, but one must be more restrained with someone else’s property.

It never ceases to amaze me – astrobiology and physics and all of that make perfect sense, but a computer – not so much. Because, frankly, whenever I do delve into the workings, I don’t find it based on a logic that makes any sense to me, where even chaos in the universe has a decent logic. I find computer “stuff” is created by people with too much time on their hands who take joy in making it as difficult and inefficient as possible. But then, my brain is wired differently, and things that other people believe have no sense or logic are absolutely transparent to me. It’s all in the perception.

So I started re-creating the piece. I still have my notes – thank goodness those didn’t go, even though that file was open. I’d updated them as changes happened, for the most part, and I’d even emailed them to myself. In fact, when I lost the document, that’s what the save was for – saved so then I could back it up and email it to myself. It was the ONLY document on the whole drive not yet sent to my backup account, and the ONLY document not printed – which is why, of course, it failed. Five more minutes, and there wouldn’t have been a problem. And it doesn’t make sense – when Word fails, it always saves something with a ~ so you can restore the document. Nothing. And it usually only dumps the version you’re working on, not every version previously saved. If I’d lost those 30 pages, I’d have been sad, but could have immediately recreated them. To lose 98 pages – when the Script Frenzy count is 100 – very frustrating. I searched every drive, checked every file to see what it mutated into – it’s as though the file never existed. Talked to several computer-savvy friends and spent an hour on the phone with a tech guy I actually trust. They agreed this can’t happen – it has to be in there somewhere.

Maybe the guys who own the computer can find it. I asked them to look and then email it to me if it turned up.

And Yasmine let me have a good cyber-weep on her shoulder. Thank you very much. It’s deeply appreciated.

So I’m going back to my extreme state of computer paranoia.

Dealing with computers makes me think of the Nine of Wands in the tarot – you’ve always got to be ready and keep those defenses up, no matter how much work you’ve put in to date.

Feeling sorry for myself wasn’t going to solve anything. I’d done everything I could physically do in terms of data recovery (or, in my case, non-data recovery). It was time to buckle down and get back to work.

In any case, I recreated the first 11 pages. Some of it’s better, like the opening sequence, because now I know Jack Danou’s coming back as ghost, and he’s not just some guy that Zenda has to kill because he and his men were hired to slaughter a village. Some of the scenes are stronger, because having written so far into it, I actually know who these characters are, and I can set them up. Some of the scenes, like the breakup scene between Carole and Sam are weaker. But hey, it’s technically draft 1 ½ , so whatever. As the character Sam said to me (the writer), “Look, it’s not as though we haven’t been around for six years or something. It’s been a couple of hours. Just drop back in and listen to us.”

I also have an idea of a technique I learned for another area of my life, and I’m wondering if I can apply it here. I don’t want to discuss it too much ahead of time, but it would be awfully intriguing if it works.

I was on the 7 PM bus out of Philly. What a horrid group of nut jobs traveled! Really, half of them should have been put off the bus – truly energy-sucking vampires and disruptive to everyone else. I just cocooned myself in my music, set up the psychic barriers (which one of the nut jobs could actually see and commented on – but he couldn’t pass it), and stayed in the world of Sharon Shinn’s THE THIRTEENTH HOUSE for the trip.

Trundled across town from Port Authority to Grand Central with my luggage, mowing down tourists and climbing over something or other that filmed near Bryant Park. Don’t know what it was, but the Craft Services guy remembered me from . . .something . . .and pressed a much-needed cup of coffee into my hand for the rest of my trip home.

Got home around 10:30, couldn’t sleep, was up unpacking and puttering far too late. Elsa and Iris were glad to see me; Violet was furious with me for leaving in the first place and wouldn’t even look at me. However, this morning, she is Velcro Kitty.

I’m going to write this morning and then I have to pack this afternoon and get another load of stuff to storage.

This time next week, the Window Tango should be complete and maybe we’ll have a little bit of peace before the scumbags come up with their next element of torture.

I’m going to combine the next trip to Maine to check on my grandmother with some serious house hunting.

Does anyone know where I can purchase binders in bulk? I keep my manuscripts in binders, and it’s ridiculously expensive. Staples just looks at me like I’ve grown extra heads when I ask about bulk binder purchase. So I need to find some other, more reasonably priced outlet. Novellas usually go in 1” or 11/2” binders, but I usually need 2 ½-3” binders for novel-length.

Because let’s face it, I’m going to print out EVERYTHING after this latest fiasco. I know, I know: Tree Murderer!

At least I’m using recycled paper, and I recycle every scrap of paper I toss.

Got a disappointing rejection this morning for a piece I was sure was a good fit for that particular venue. Guess I was wrong. So off it goes to the next one on the list.

Devon

Devon’s Bookstore:

5 in 10: Create 5 Short Stories in Ten Weeks by Devon Ellington. This ebooklet takes you from inspiration to writing to revision to marketing. By the end of ten weeks, you will have either 5 short stories or a good chunk of a novella complete. And it’s only 50 cents, USD. Here.

Writing Rituals: Ideas to Support Creativity by Cerridwen Iris Shea. This ebooklet contains several rituals to help you start writing, get you through writer’s block, and help send your work on its way. It’s only 39 cents USD. (Note: Cerridwen Iris Shea is one of the six names under which I publish). Here.

Full Circle: An Ars Concordia Anthology. Edited by Colin Galbraith. This is a collection of short stories, poems, and other pieces by a writers’ group of which I am a member. My story is “Pauvre Bob”, set at Arlington Race Track in Illinois. You can download it free here:

The weather’s about twenty degrees cooler here than predicted, so I’ve been pretty chilly this entire trip. Drinking lots of hot tea.

Yesterday was fun. Got some writing done in the morning, met my friend for lunch at El Vez,where we had a good catch up session. She’s always fun to spend time with, just the best. We’re going to have to schedule a day where I come down and we just go shoe shopping (she had on the CUTEST shoes ever — even the waitress loved them).

She had to get back home, but I stopped at Robin’s books and picked up some magazines. One, I think I’m going to work up some pitches; it’s right up my alley. One of the others seemed as though it would be, but the writing in it was so bad and so un-edited that it’s just not worth it.

Stopped at Remedy, the tea bar on Sansom — wow, what a great place! Got a large cup to go, because if I’d stayed in that mellow atmosphere, I would have just put my head on the table and gone back to sleep.

Did some reading and writing in the afternoon. Wyatt got some love, and, although I haven’t finished Old-Fashioned Detective Work, at least he doesn’t feel neglected.

Came up with some other ideas, too, and am hoping I can combine some of them. Came up with an idea for a fun female buddy road movie (I love those). The last thing I need is to write another script, but doing first drafts as scripts and then adapting them to prose seems to be working right now, so we’ll see.

I’ve often found, though, that scripts come in batches. I won’t write any for a few years, and then I’ll write a stack, and then I won’t write any for a few years, etc. Cyclical.

I’ve almost finished my Script Frenzy screenplay. I’m on p. 88. I expect it to run 145 pages, about 2:25 running time. One character who was supposed to be in a single scene surprised me and has an important element to add further down the line. But the character that really surprised me is the mercenary killed in the third scene by my protag who has now come back as a ghost. He was denied access to the underworld and told she holds the key to his redemption. I’m just as puzzled as she is, but I’m going with it. And it’s pretty weirdly funny when she scolds him to put his head back on (she cut it off after she killed him — a bit of Celtic lore thrown in there) before she’ll talk to him.

I could probably cough up the female buddy road movie within Script Frenzy, too, if I really tried.

I’m doing the laundry here and packing. I leave tonight to head back to NY. Don’t want to. I’d rather stay here in this Sanctuary. But I have to deal with the Window Tango, and then get up to Maine, because my grandmother had a fall last week, and she’s upset. So, once the window stuff is done next week, I need to get up there and sort things out.

Pitched for a couple of jobs, but I can’t take anything on with a deadline with all this crap going on. So it’s going to be a lean month. Happens sometimes.

Had breakfast with two lovely guys I’ve known since they were drafted into the pros. They’ve always been talented, but they’ve grown into such good men, good human beings: Talented, kind, intelligent, loyal, dedicated, funny, compassionate, strong. And handsome! If there are still human beings like these two around, maybe we’re not entirely doomed after all.

For those who asked, of course there are rules about when construction can start. But, because the penalties are so slight, no one pays attention. What needs to happen is:

First time– warning
Second time — six figure fine
Third time — the developer forfeits his right to the property. It goes to the city under eminent domain (if the Supreme Court’s going to screw us by putting it into effect, it should be used for good) and the ONLY ways it can then be developed are either affordable housing or non-profit headquarters.

Yesterday was fine; commute sucked – the commuters around here are the rudest, most ignorant idiots with a misplaced sense of self-entitlement that one could find. Thank goodness for the Zen V – I could put in the earphones, turn up the music and shut them out.

I had two shows (not the one I quit, another one), which went smoothly and were fine. A friend and I trudged a few blocks through horizontal snow on dinner break for Chinese food at one of our favorite restaurants. When we returned, we found the cast album won a Grammy, so morale was especially high that night. All good.

AND, I’ve been invited to the final dress of the new Stoppard play on Wednesday! Woo-hoo!

During downtimes, I worked out some plot fixes for The Balthazaar Treasure and come up with plot lines for something else. Well, it was more characters, but then the plot starting unwinding, so we’ll see what happens with that. I’ve got several shorter pieces to cough up first.

It was brutally cold getting home, and I got a bit of scare. There was a guy standing behind me as I waited for the train to get into the station, and something just wasn’t right. He was dressed in a first responder uniform, but something was . . .off. The body type was off, the way he moved, the energy. Then, I realized that the patches weren’t authentic. (Bless ‘em, on Conviction a few years ago, for teaching me how to read the patches). He was a fake. He got off the train behind me. I paused, pretending my boot lace was untied and let him move ahead of me. I thought about going to the police station (in sight), but he hadn’t done anything. So I walked towards the tunnel, then, abruptly turned and doubled back and went across the overpass instead. Let’s face it, at midnight on a Sunday, there aren’t a lot of people hanging around there. I crossed the street towards my building, but I looked back in the tunnel – there he was, hanging around, looking back to where he thought I would come down. I guess he had a long wait, because I kept going. I’m glad I trusted my instincts.

Today is about practicality, not creativity. I have a boatload of paperwork to file with agencies dealing with both the identity theft and the building crap. I have to consolidate this draft of Tracking Medusa into a single file (when I do drafts, I keep each chapter in a separate file). I have to polish the outline and the synopsis. I have to tweak the query letter. It goes to the person to whom I promised first look tomorrow, but in case that’s not the right match, I want to be ready to shoot it out to the next batch on the list immediately. I have to finish an assignment for Confidential Job #1. And it would be a good idea to get some pitches out. I’ve been lax on that the past week or so – mostly because the listings have been insulting. And I have to work on an ebook.

It would be nice to get some creative work done today, but I’m not counting on it.

However, I am counting on staying inside – let’s hope the building scumbags leave the heat on today!

Oh, and if you haven’t read the interview with Yasmine Galenorn on A Biblio Paradise, um, why not? Hop on over!

Devon

Devon’s Bookstore:

5 in 10: Create 5 Short Stories in Ten Weeks by Devon Ellington. This ebooklet takes you from inspiration to writing to revision to marketing. By the end of ten weeks, you will have either 5 short stories or a good chunk of a novella complete. And it’s only 50 cents, USD. Here.

Writing Rituals: Ideas to Support Creativity by Cerridwen Iris Shea. This ebooklet contains several rituals to help you start writing, get you through writer’s block, and help send your work on its way. It’s only 39 cents USD. (Note: Cerridwen Iris Shea is one of the six names under which I publish). Here.

Full Circle: An Ars Concordia Anthology. Edited by Colin Galbraith. This is a collection of short stories, poems, and other pieces by a writers’ group of which I am a member. My story is “Pauvre Bob”, set at Arlington Race Track in Illinois. You can download it free here:

Come visit A Biblio Paradise to read the interview with Yasmine Galenorn. Her books are fascinating, and so is a glimpse into her process.

Felt pretty fragile and frustrated yesterday. It was hard to focus and get things done. I felt very fractured and worn out from everything that’s going on.

And, I’m trying to get Valentine’s Day sorted, so there are no misunderstandings, etc. Valentine’s Day during Mercury Retrograde. Ack!

I’m working out of town next weekend, and I cannot tell you how much I’m looking forward to it!

Oh, and I’m being chided by the men in my life for not calling them when the identity theft happened. Honestly, it never occurred to me. I just went ahead and did what I had to do. It’s not like they could file paperwork on my behalf or anything. One of them is actually in a line of work where he might be able to do something, but he’s working out of the country right now. He understood that I just did what needed to be done, but the other two . . .good intentions, but honey, you can’t fix it.

Work was fine last night; caught up with people, everything went well, etc. Getting home at midnight was tiring, but not as tiring as getting in even later would be, or getting up early to head back in, so it’s all fine.

Got some work done on Old-Fashioned Detective Work yesterday, and then spent most of my time on Tracking Medusa. I’m almost done with the third draft, and will put in changes today, tweak the letter, and out it goes.

Sorting out the other deadlines – I have to be very disciplined and VERY productive the rest of this month, with a high daily word count. Instead of spreading a lower word count over several projects, I’m going to try for a high word count on each in turn and see how that works.

5 in 10: Create 5 Short Stories in Ten Weeks by Devon Ellington. This ebooklet takes you from inspiration to writing to revision to marketing. By the end of ten weeks, you will have either 5 short stories or a good chunk of a novella complete. And it’s only 50 cents, USD. Here.

Writing Rituals: Ideas to Support Creativity by Cerridwen Iris Shea. This ebooklet contains several rituals to help you start writing, get you through writer’s block, and help send your work on its way. It’s only 39 cents USD. (Note: Cerridwen Iris Shea is one of the six names under which I publish). Here.

Full Circle: An Ars Concordia Anthology. Edited by Colin Galbraith. This is a collection of short stories, poems, and other pieces by a writers’ group of which I am a member. My story is “Pauvre Bob”, set at Arlington Race Track in Illinois. You can download it free here:

First – hop on over to A Biblio Paradise to see the review of Yasmine Galenorn’s Darkling. And come back over there tomorrow to read the interview with her. And drop a comment while you’re there, if you get a chance.

Yesterday’s excursion was good. It was a trek up to the Book Barn in Niantic, with the hope of picking up books I need for the next SmartPop essay. No luck – not a one of them. But I bought a bunch of other books; and one of the cats(the black one, of course) was the escort from building to building, playing and purring and just being a delight.

Great baked scallop lunch at the Yankee Clipper, back home, and I think I’ve located the books I need – I’ll know in a couple of days.

No creative work done at all – too wiped out.

Have to make up for it today, especially since I’m working in the city tonight. I’m starting with Old-Fashioned Detective Work, moving on to the sci-fi horror western, then finishing up Tracking Medusa. And some intriguing new possibilities have appeared on the radar.

Lots to write; few hours left in the day. I better get going.

Devon

Devon’s Bookstore:

5 in 10: Create 5 Short Stories in Ten Weeks by Devon Ellington. This ebooklet takes you from inspiration to writing to revision to marketing. By the end of ten weeks, you will have either 5 short stories or a good chunk of a novella complete. And it’s only 50 cents, USD. Here.

Writing Rituals: Ideas to Support Creativity by Cerridwen Iris Shea. This ebooklet contains several rituals to help you start writing, get you through writer’s block, and help send your work on its way. It’s only 39 cents USD. (Note: Cerridwen Iris Shea is one of the six names under which I publish). Here.

Full Circle: An Ars Concordia Anthology. Edited by Colin Galbraith. This is a collection of short stories, poems, and other pieces by a writers’ group of which I am a member. My story is “Pauvre Bob”, set at Arlington Race Track in Illinois. You can download it free here:

My head is so full of information, it’s about to explode. That’s not necessarily a bad thing; I just need to figure out what to do with it all.

And, I was naughty yesterday — no, bring your mind back to what we actually discuss on this blog, the rest isn’t open for viewing! 😉 Although it may well be relevant! 😉 Instead of working on TRACKING MEDUSA last night, I read Yasmine Galenorn’s DARKLING. And really enjoyed it. I’m a big fan of her series, and this was one of the books I’ve looked forward to most in the past few months.

The day didn’t start out in a promising fashion. I was an hour and a half late getting out of the house — I get up here later than I do at home, and that lost time in the morning is vital. I walked from Rittenhouse Square down to the Historic District. I’d looked up the three places I needed to hit online to make sure of their hours, the fees, etc.

First stop: Historic home. I get there. There’s a little sign on the locked gate saying it’s closed for renovations this week. Now, I checked the website before I left the apartment, and there was nothing on there about it. I was annoyed, to say the least. There was also a sign that suggested visiting the church used by the figure, which was the second stop on my list.

I go to the church. The gate is locked. It’s closed for renovation. Again, there was nothing about it on the website. The sign at the church suggested visiting the cemetary, which was the third stop on my list.

I get there, and it’s locked and there’s a sign saying they decided to close it for January and February. Again, there was nothing on the website about it.

I was not amused. In fact, I was rather in a mood by this time. I stalk down the street to another historical location and follow a guy with a briefcase in the side door. The security guard starts to say something to me, and my response is, “Don’t even.” He backed off immediately with, “Yes, ma’am. I’m sorry, ma’am.” I didn’t actually need to be at Site 4, but it was a good place to wander around and calm down, and I must have carried some serious NY “don’t mess with me” attitude, because the guards all kept a safe distance.

I wandered around soaking up Revolutionary War energy and trying to figure out what to do next. Obviously, I wasn’t supposed to be on those sites. So I left (saying thank you to the startled guards) and wandered around for a bit, letting my feet guide me.

I stopped at a sandwich place for lunch, and, feeling restored, headed to the Historical Society of Philadelphia. They were fantastic there, so nice, so helpful. I spent the afternoon there, and got done the bulk of the microfilm research I needed. I forgot how much of a pain in the ass the microfilm machines are. Digging through all these documents, I found out some pretty interesting stuff — the parents of one figure I’m reserching were called before their congregation on charges of being “intimate” before marriage, and admitted it. Coming across the marriage certificate later, they’d married in New Jersey, not in Philly. I still have to cross check some dates, but I think their first kid or two was born before the marriage. And I’m pretty sure their daughter’s third husband murdered her first two — it’s too much of a coincidence that he just “happened” to be there when they both died — one in Philly and one in England, and No. 3 just “happens” to be there, too? Doesn’t add up to me. I could never prove it — there’s not enough documentation, I’d be building a theory on circumstantial evidence. And the more research I do, the more I think it makes more sense to do this as a novel rather than a non-fiction piece.

I ddin’t talk to any of the History Boys, but they were there. And they were all male. They’re committed and passionate, but they’re going to lose because they lack somethng: Ruthlessness. They’re workig on ideology, and if you’re going to defeat Evil Developers, you have to take the fight to a whole other level and do some serious ass-kicking. I may have to give them a solid talking-to today, since I have some experience in this area. The only other woman researching was on a totally different project, and she sighed every two minutes and muttered to herself until I was ready to rip the microfilm off the reader and strangle her with it. Come on, people, you’re not by yourself, have a little consideration! All the other researchers were extremely considerate.

I’m already late, but I need to go over my notes again before I leave and see which diaries I want to pull and read today. I’d like to get a little writing done, too. I miss the early morning writing. The Horsemen of the Apocalypse story is brewing, the other idea about which I was approached is growing, Jain and Wyatt from Hex Breaker have another adventure to get on, Earth Bride wants attention, and so does The Balthazaar Treasure. My brain feels like a tangled skein of yarn.

But my body’s recovered from the bad fumes — walking around, getting the blood pumping in the air helped a lot. Granted, city air isn’t exactly clean and fresh, but it’s still better than being trapped in a bus full of fumes.

I stood on the train platform yesterday morning in my short-sleeved shirt, waiting for the train, annoyed with myself for walking out of the house without a jacket or a sweater (I expected it to be still warm – silly me, believing the meteorologists)!. There was a cute guy on the platform, busy with his PDA. Suddenly, he walked up, took off his suit jacket and draped it around me, saying he didn’t want me to be cold. I made a joke that I must have turned as blue as my shirt, but appreciated it. Of course, the train was air conditioned, so I appreciated it even more!

We grabbed a cup of (hot) coffee when we reached the city, talked a bit (I’d pegged him as a swimmer – broad shoulder, narrow hips, and I was right), I gave him back his jacket and we went our separate ways. He reads a lot, and the idea of writing always fascinated him, but he’s never tried it – although he admits he mentally rewrites books and television episodes he doesn’t like. I teased him that he’s probably a natural-born editor!

It was a pleasant way to start the day.

I’ll have to put a character inspired by him in one of my stories.

Exhausted. Day work was busy – cast changes, two new leads, a put-in rehearsal, the works.

I agreed to take on a gig next week that I already regret. It’s something I already turned down, and I should have kept turning it down. But they were desperate, and the cash will cover most of November’s bills, so I’m going to shut up and deal. But the very thought of it is already upsetting me. That’s what happens when you make the wrong decision – there’s a price attached.

Grabbed a quick dinner and went over to the other theatre to start learning that show. We weren’t sure if the lock-out would start before the show or not, so we simply carried on as normal. The show went on, but the lock-out could start today, and then who knows what will happen.

No one wants any kind of strike, but the harsh reality is that labor, in general, needs to take a stand. Bluntly, all of the unions in every area should strike right now, and regain some of the ground the unions have lost in the last 30 years. The CEOs scream that the economy can’t support union demands – yet the CEOs and top staff are making more money and bigger profits than ever, while they cut back on wages and health care for the people who actually do the work. If people were paid adequately for the work performed, then they could afford to put that money back into the economy. No matter how it’s advertised, the luxury market cannot support the entire nation’s economy. And US companies should be forbidden to outsource to other countries until our own unemployment rate is below a half a percent.

If entertainment unions do go out over the next few months (the WGA contracts are up this month, too), I ask that you not believe the management spin doctors and listen to me, someone who’s actually worked in the trenches. Don’t even listen to the union spin doctors – although the ones they hire are usually pathetic and do more harm than good. In negotiations, both sides lie to the public to get what they want. Whatever you read in the paper will have little to do with what’s actually happening at the table. I’ve been a negotiator – I’ve seen the hypocrisy.

The show itself is fun to work. I haven’t seen it yet (in spite of its Tony win), but everyone is nice, there’s no raked stage to wreak havoc with the body, and the cues make sense. It’s easy enough so I only had to trail – I don’t have to do it while being trailed. I’ll just jump in and do it when it’s time for me to do it.

Came home, posted today’s exercise on the Workshop board. This morning, I’m working on my own homework for the other workshops, and I’ll catch up reading and commenting on the homework in my workshops.

I’m very excited about both worlds I’m building in the world-building workshops. I think I might use one of them for my Nano instead of Effie, because I’ll have so much work done on it, I should be in a position to write it.

We’ll see. I still don’t know if I can do Nano.

And I’m so exhausted right now that I just want to go back to bed. Not an option. First, I have to catch up on everything. Maybe later I can take a nap. Of course, I also have to go grocery shopping – we finished the cat food today and the beasts are horrified by the empty spot in the cupboard!

My last day in New York. I’ve enjoyed this self-imposed retreat, although I didn’t get as many word on paper as I wanted to. And I love Costume Imp’s cats. But I miss my own, and I need to get back into the house-hunting saddle again. Also, this week is the Dialogue Workshop for the Muse Online Conference, and I now have over 160 people signed up. I want to make sure everyone gets the attention they need and deserve (and, should there be attention-hogs, that they don’t suck all the energy out of the place).

I’m probably the world’s worst hostess, and you know what? On one level, I don’t care. I’ve read, over the past few weeks, people’s sites who say they can’t blog or write because they have company. Um, when I have company, I’m up super early, put the coffee on, bake something, and then retreat to my desk and do my day’s quota. Woe to anyone who tries to interrupt me. They have coffee and fresh-baked whatevers; there’s a newspaper; you’re not a toddler, amuse yourself for a few hours. To me, protecting the writing is the MOST important thing. They are on MY turf – they live under my house rules. After I’ve done my day’s quota, I come out and we sightsee or go to a concert or a museum or whatever – but mornings are sacred writing time, no matter who’s in the place. The energy’s different with guests – especially in a small apartment. I’m similar to Yasmine Galenorn in that I’m very aware of the energy of others in the house while I’m writing, even those I love, and I prefer an empty house. But if I don’t have it, I can work anyway.

And when I’m a guest, I stay quietly in my room, doing my day’s work, until I hear the hosts moving around, give them time to get settled in the day, and then I get up and about.

Again, a traffic jam by mid-afternoon, with them all backed up, honking horns and screaming at each other. People, it doesn’t make the traffic move faster!

More reasons to leave New York:

–three teenagers set a sleeping homeless man on fire;
–an explosion on 119th St. that might have been a gas leak or might have been a crystal meth lab;
–a man had an altercation at a Dunkin Donuts; he then ran into a restaurant on the East Side in the 30s, grabbed a knife, stabbed someone who worked there, then repeatedly stabbed an elderly woman walking her dog outside the restaurant.

Who wants to live like this? For me, NY’s negatives now outweigh the positive. It will always be a fascinating city, but I need something else.

One of the most wearing things about living in the city is the constant rage. Those with money can protect themselves and keep from dealing with it – they live in high-rises, they’ve got the double-paned glass, the doormen, the car services. But the regular, working New Yorkers have to deal with a constant energy of anger.

There’s plenty about which to be angry. This city is run by a billionaire, and corporation executives are making obscene personal profits, while every day, people are forced out of homes and jobs, onto the streets, homeless and starving. Regular people who might have the cubicle beside you at work. And it’s not just in New York, it’s all over the country. It is inexcusable that there is any homelessness or hunger in this country. The Republicans call it “personal responsibility” and that’s their justification to keep the gap growing between the top corporate execs and everyone else. There is plenty in this country for everyone to have the basics for a decent life; however, the corporate honchos only see their way to having more – and they are never satisfied – is by taking away and giving everyone less.

Cities should not offer corporations tax breaks. They should only get tax breaks based on how much they do for the community in terms of setting up shelters, educational programs, affordable housing (as in, someone on minimum wage only needs to spend 1/3 of that wage on rent), affordable health care, and food banks. Not the so-called “corporate philanthropy” where corporations give money to other corporations set up as non-profits, which then dole it out to their favorites. Corporations should have to get out on the street and make a difference, in direct proportion to their profit. People who work for corporations should be paid to spend 10 hours per week manning these programs. Give people a roof over their heads and a full belly, and they can start to focus on getting their lives back on track, getting better skills, searching for jobs that can support their families, because they’re not panicked and in despair. Those who have physical/emotional/psychological problems need access to care, so they can build lives. I’m not talking about handouts for life – I’m talking about putting systems in place to let people live with dignity. The parasites can get weeded out. And there are more parasites at the top of corporations than there are trying to get welfare. Just because he wears an expensive suit doesn’t mean he’s not corrupt. But, also, basic costs such as rents and fuel have to be controlled.

Dived back into Tracking Medusa. I’m the happiest writing this book as I’ve been since writing Shallid. This book and its characters are very special to me. Dropped right down into the well with Gwen and Justin. Finished Chapter Seventeen, when Gwen astral projects to keep from revealing information under sodium penothol and protect Justin. It took some wacky turns, but I like it, and it also wraps up some things in the plot that were dangling (mostly because I had no idea what to do with them). Finished Chapter Eighteen, where they’re running from the vampire hunters (who don’t care that Gwen and Justin aren’t vampires), and the stress finally gets to Gwen. Just under 5K on that story today. And, if I had more stamina, I’d have kept going.

All I had the energy to do was flip channels on bad TV. I tried to watch Failure to Launch. While I liked the supporting cast a lot and thought that the B storylines were handled better than the A storyline, I found the lacking elements in the A storyline so frustrating I couldn’t stand it. Structure-wise, I found it interesting, but it didn’t serve as entertainment for me, and that’s what I needed.

Watched a couple of episodes of Torchwood. Interesting series, with mixed feelings about it. I like John Barrowman’s work a lot, and I think there are some interesting thematic structures. What concerned me when I watched episodes back to back was that each episode I viewed ended on a note of almost existential hopelessness. If there’s never a sign of hope, it certainly won’t hold me for long, and I wonder how long it can hold an audience. In fiction, as in life, I want solutions that move us to a more positive place. I want it even more in fiction when it doesn’t happen in life, and it’s one of the things for which I strive in life. In the “Fairy” episode, I also felt the structure was not true to the internal logic of the fae that had been set up in regard to Estelle. I understand her death from a dramatic point of view, in the way it affected Captain Jack, but it was not believable or necessary, to me, within the fae logic which had been set up at the top of the episode, or in Captain Jack’s story of the troop train.

Looks like the stagehands are going to cave to the producers’ demands. I can’t even begin to say how disgusted I am. I hope I’m wrong – I hope it’s just more posturing. If I’m right, let’s just say I’m getting out of this arena of the business at the right time.

Didn’t sleep much last night because of street noise. I think it quieted down around 3 AM. By 8 AM, the next door neighbor had his disco beat going – but still more quietly than the downstairs neighbor back home.

Spent a leisurely morning reading the paper and getting depressed at the violent state of the world.

It’s the vibration that bothers me as much as the noise. I really need to live someplace quite and quietly rural.

Took a walk about mid-morning. It was so hot yesterday that I had to run the air conditioner for awhile. Scanned the job boards. Procrastinated instead of buckling down and getting my articles done.

Fretted about fiction projects, which is just silly. Pick one and DO it.

Considered going up to the NY Historical Society to do research, but they’re closing early for a private party. Besides, I’m not in the mood to work in pencil. If anything, I’m in a magic marker mood.

Managed to get my act together to finish, polish and send two more articles out. I think one of them is too long and too personal; might have to do a rewrite. I have to finish two more – these two are more difficult – today, and then I’ve met my commitment through the end of the year, for this particular publication.

Thinking about how I want to shape my next Lit Athlete column, using both some of the material the agents brought up, but that I couldn’t use from the one about to publish, and also the ideas sparked by the agent with whom I spoke at the PEN event.

I’m signed up for Nano, even though I don’t know if I can do it. Nor can I decide which project I want to work on, if I can. It can’t be the Untitled Literary Fiction, because that can only progress at about 500 words/day. That is the piece’s rhythm, and I have to respect it. Perhaps I will get some ideas in the workshops I plan to take next week, at the Muse Online Conference, in addition to the one I’m teaching.

Started reading American Vertigo by the French philosopher Bernard-Henri Lévy. I’d first heard about the book when Jon Stewart interviewed him. I picked it up during the PEN World Voices conference, in between seminars, when Alain de Botton’s views on travel gave me so much to think about. As stresses mounted this summer, it stayed in the “To be read” pile and I read mind candy instead, but now I’m finally coming back to it. Reading a French philosopher’s work while sipping wine – all I need is to be in a brownstone in Greenwich Village and I’m a total cliché! 😉

I “should” be out and about, spending time with my NYC-based friends, but I just don’t have the emotional energy this week.

I roughed out what will be my Nano if I’m in a position to do it. It’s a comic mystery called Effie. If you’re a Dashiell Hammett fan, you’ll get it. If you’re not, oh well. I need to figure it out scene-by-scene, but it’s an idea that I’ve tossed around for ten or fifteen years, so it’s about time I write it. And if it’s not Nano, at least I know I’ve got another novel planned.

Good core workout last night; good yoga workout this morning.

Difficult morning’s work on Prince Paisley’s Chintz. Good morning’s work on the Revenge Tangents revision.

Errands to run, bills to pay, and then more articles to write. It’s a busy day. And so hot! It’s supposed to be autumn, and it feels like July!

My article “Travers Triumphant” is up on FemmeFan. Unfortunately, there seems to be a problem with the link, so you have to go to the home page of Femmefan,

and then scroll down until you see “Travers Triumphant”. Sorry.

I had a great, busy, couple of days.

And I did it again, what I always do when I go to Philadelphia.

I bought shoes.

Last year, I bought three pairs and had to haul them back up to NY. This year, I bought only two. Both are lovely suede flats, one in brown, and one in a red that goes with the new fall purse.

Hello, my name is Devon and I’m a Shoe-A-Holic.

Only I don’t want to be cured.

There’s the old joke: How many pairs of shoes should a woman own?

Answer: One more pair than she already has.

Tuesday, work was okay. I like most of the people, but the situation is no longer for me, and if I don’t cut the cord and do without it as my safety net, I’ll never move forward. I kept telling myself I was hanging in there to make insurance, but our union’s screwed us so badly insurance-wise that I’m not going to make it anyway, so why stay in a situation that’s no longer supporting any part of my life?

One of my colleagues was about to fly to London that night. He landed the job as the assistant designer for a show that’s coming to Broadway from the National in London, and off he goes to learn the show, work with the designer, etc. Good for him! I love it when something like that comes together so quickly! He’s very talented and deserves it. He text-messaged me yesterday to let me know it was great over there. The National’s a wonderful place – everyone is so nice and the facility is outstanding. He’ll have a blast.

Shot out of work and down to Port Authority. The 4 o’clock bus was still loading when I got there, so I thought maybe I could get on that, but they ran out of seats. Then, they put us through so-called security checks – poorest excuse for a security check I’ve ever seen.

They pulled up another bus, and I ended up on one that left at 4:37 instead of 5:00, which worked for me.

The ride was fine, although the bus was full. People were just tired, and most of them slept on the bus –except for the guy in the seat ahead of me who sung tunelessly to himself the whole time, until I was ready to hurt him. So I put on my MP3 Player instead, which seemed like a much more equitable solution.

I tried to read on the bus, but was so disappointed with the book. I felt almost guilty not liking it, because the writer’s gotten a lot of praise and won quite a few awards. But I don’t like the characters and the story’s not told engagingly enough to keep me focused. So that book is going into the Book Mooch pile.

Arrived in Philly a little before 7, grabbed a cab, got to my friend’s place, dumped my stuff. We went across the street to a really cute pub called The Black Sheep. They’re very nice there and the food is good. I had my first hamburger in ages (topped with roasted red peppers and garlic spinach), and a Sam Adams Cherry Wheat Ale. I’d never had that before, and it was quite good – doesn’t taste like beer. But I eat red meat so rarely now that I felt like I was walking around with a lump of lead in my stomach for the rest of the night.

Hung out with my friends, did some crocheting, but went to bed pretty early. Slept well, up early, yoga. I felt separation anxiety since I left my mat at home, but they had wall-to-wall carpeting. Their cat had never seen yoga before and was both freaked out and fascinated.

Brought breakfast in from Miel Bakery. We walked down to Trader Joe’s and did some grocery shopping. On the way back, we hung out in Rittenhouse Square for awhile. It’s so beautiful. I’d love to set a story in that area.

I met my friend L. for lunch at Susanna Foo’s. The food was exquisite (I had curried chicken dumplings, the crabmeat Egg Foo Yong, and a glass of pinot noir) and the service was excellent – a rarity in Philadelphia, in my experience. My friend and I had a great catch-up time, and then walked the half a block to Lush, where we treated ourselves to organic soaps and creams.

Later that afternoon, I dropped by one of the theatres to catch up with some old friends (missed them), and, on the way back, bought shoes.

Cooked dinner for my friends, hung out with other friends. Didn’t sleep well – I dreamed I was moving furniture all night, and woke up exhausted.

I hoped to get some writing done in Rittenhouse Square, but they had it sealed off to shoot a movie – I think it was the same M. Night Shyamalan movie that shot near my friend’s place last week. As I passed the wardrobe truck, I kidded with the crew, “Can’t I ever get away from work?”

I cooked a big salmon lunch for my friends, and then decided to take a 2 PM bus instead of a 4 PM bus back to New York. I got on, no problem, and read Yasmine Galenorn’s Witchling on the way home. It’s great – if you haven’t read her Sisters of the Moon series, go out and get them right now!!!

Hauled my luggage across from Port Authority to Grand Central, cursing out the tourists all the way. New Yorkers aren’t rude, tourists are. They also act like the biggest, sloppiest pigs ever. It’s disgusting, and I wish the cops would start ticketing again for litter (as if they don’t have enough to do).

Caught the 4:49 express and was back home by 5:45. The cats were so happy!

Chilled out and played with the cats.

Did not have a good start to the morning. Was jolted out of bed at 6:25 AM when, two buildings down, they started in with the leaf blowers. We have an ordinance in town that says they can’t start until 7 AM weekdays and 9 AM on Sundays. So I went down to tell them to stop and they started with the bullshit, “No speak English.” Amazing how quickly they found it when the cops showed up. One guy said something demeaning towards women as the cops wrote them up and I asked him if he wanted me to cut his dick off and feed it to him. Anyway, the building owners are being fined and so is the landscaping company.

Unfortunately, the noise also woke up the crazy downstairs neighbor who turned on his television full blast and then decided to “sing” – which is basically a cross between yodeling and a cat being tortured.

Like I said, not a good way to start the day.

I still have to finish and send off two articles today. I had a good morning’s work on Good Names. Finished the confrontation –with-the-killer chapter. It’s a little odd – I’ve never read a scene quite like it, but I think it’s fun, and hope it gets to stay in the book. I have about two more chapters and then this draft is DONE!

Off to do some errands, check the job boards (but without much hope – bad week on the job boards), and finish those articles. I’d like to do some more work on Good Names later today – it would be great if I could finish the draft before I leave for my next gig on Sunday.

Busy day yesterday. I had a lot to do and not much time in which to get it done. And the noise was ridiculous – workers screaming at each other and behaving like unsupervised toddlers (but using four letter words) under my windows. And more asshole developers walking around seeing how much it’ll cost to get the building emptied so they can do whatever they want to it.

So I turned up the bagpipes full volume, threw open the windows, and the disruptors scattered in all directions.

Thanks for ideas on securing the place. I have a bagua mirror on the front door. Very few problems from that direction. In fact, one of the evil developers flinched as though he’d been stung last time he walked past it, so the front’s protected. Maybe that’s why I’m having problems at the fire escape! Hmmm – wonder if I can fasten another one to the outside of the window? The spice bottles are a good idea, Abby, if I can figure out a way to keep the cats from thinking that knocking them down and rolling them under the bed is the coolest new game ever!!!

I am putting up a sigil on the window that will serve as some serious intimidation, if nothing else!

Had another aha! moment while reading. I picked up some easy reads the other day, and that’s what I’ve been doing. I was pleasantly surprised by them. Two of the books are part of Michele Scott’s Napa Wine Country series. Usually I avoid what I call “gimmick” mysteries, because they tend to substitute one character trait as the be-all and end-all for the protagonist, who becomes a caricature instead of a fully-rounded character. However, these books avoided falling into that hole, and I enjoyed them. The protagonist and her romantic dilemmas began to grate by the end of the second book, though. When you’ve had the SAME misunderstanding repeatedly in the same way with the same guy three or four times – it’s not cute, it’s not Fate keeping them apart, it’s the characters acting like they’re in high school, and it got on my nerves. That was my only complaint, though. The second book had a really interesting plot twist which I admired.

The book I read yesterday I picked up because of the pseudonym – India Ink. Turns out it’s one of a series of mysteries written by Yasmine Galenorn under that name. I’d read some of her Chintz ‘n China mysteries, which had some clever stuff in them, but I felt stuck too close to formula (I had the feeling she was forced into some of those choices by her publisher). And I’m a huge, huge, huge fan of her Sisters of the Moon series, which I think is one of the best, most passionate, most enchanting and enveloping series out there right now. So I was delighted that I’d just “happened” to pick up this book. You know me – no such thing as coincidence. Her protag mixes natural fragrances – something to which I can totally relate – and makes bath salts, etc. I really enjoyed the book, which was brave enough to know the formula and break it in places. And it struck on a few things I’d been mulling over. I shot off an email to Galenorn, got an answer, and suddenly – another aha! moment. Not the kind of “I know everything now”, but the kind of “oh, THAT’s what that means”.

I can feel the shift out of certain stucknesses in which I’ve been mired, and that’s a good thing. Don’t know where it’ll lead or how I’ll get there, but I’m starting to feel movement, and in a positive way, which is such a relief.

It was as though something about the book helped me understand another piece of the puzzle, which is a good thing.

Shout out to Poets and Pornstars! Congrats on the release of your CD today – wish I was on the West Coast to celebrate with you!

Rewrote and submitted an article. Submitted a short story. Scoured the job boards – absolutely nothing I wanted to pitch. Caught up on some email. Got a response from an interview request I sent out a few weeks ago and sent out the questions. I have an idea for a project that I really, really want to do. It would have to have a specific release date next March (tied to a calendar celebration day), but I’m not sure I can get it together in time, so I’m wondering if I should launch the preliminary late next spring in order to release the project the following March. I have to think about it. It needs more percolation time. When some of these outstanding invoices are paid, I can purchase a couple of things vital to making these percolating projects happen, and then I’ll have a better sense of scheduling.

I tried to convince the cats that washing the floors was a really fun new game. They weren’t having it. It’s days like this I wish I had a dog – I bet I could convince the dog it was fun!

Great weight session last night; good yoga session this morning, in spite of the cats chasing each other and running across my back while I was in Bow!

Decent morning’s work on Good Names, but too short.

Off to the theatre – day work and then off to another gig. I’ll be online somewhat this week, but not regularly. I will, however, have a lot of uninterrupted work time, if all goes as it should.

I was so exhausted after the matinee yesterday that I practically crawled home from the city. I did a rough of the America’s Cup article, and then went to bed.

I had to polish it this morning (plus I’d hoped some answers would come in to some questions before deadline). No such luck. I polished, sent, and that was that for this week. If I get the information I wanted in time for next week’s deadline, I’ll include it. Otherwise, I’ll write around it.

Yesterday’s race was postponed due to lack of wind, so tomorrow morning’s race could decide the Cup. Or not. I’m hoping not, because I’d like to see a couple more races.

I then had errands to run, and I had to have lunch at the restaurant I’m reviewing this week (which was excellent, by the way). Got out a couple more pitches, and now I’m buckling down to two other articles I want to get out this week. I also need to get a few more interview requests out.

Since I haven’t heard back from my multiple requests in May and June to one particular potential interviewee, I’m assuming he’s too busy and/or not interested, and dumping him from my list. For whatever reason, it didn’t work out, and I’ve got far too much work coming in right now (thank goodness) to get my ego in a twist about it. Stuff happens, and one can’t say yes to everything (although I’d rather have someone just tell me “no” than not respond at all). Everyone’s busy, and sometimes things fall through the cracks. I’m just as guilty of that as anyone else – suddenly seeing something in the “in box” going “How long was THIS here? Oh, f***!”

Short post today; probably short post tomorrow; then I’ll be off-line for a day or two, as I’m going to a lovely party on the 4th out of town. Will check in again when I can.
Devon

Today is the longest day and shortest night of the year. After today, which many mistakenly call “the first day” of Summer – it’s actually MIDsummer, the days start shortening, and the wheel begins its turn towards the dark half of the year.

Thanks so much for your support regarding the problems here in the building. In spite of my “itchy feet” and love of travel, I need a very secure home base. When that’s threatened, I go into warrior mode. Unfortunately, I’ve spent the better part of two years in that mode, and I have battle fatigue. Also, because the people with whom I’ve fought side by side for two years are equally fatigued, and they don’t want to believe that there are those who’ve switched sides (for money, of course) and don’t want to believe it’s all starting again, they simply ignore it and think it’ll go away. I’m being accused of being Cassandra, but you know what? She was RIGHT. And so am I. The emotional reality is that I’m deeply hurt that they’d pick the choice of ignorance rather than continue to fight for their homes, but the actual reality is that they owe me nothing – and, in the same vein, I owe them nothing. I need to do what’s best for me and my family. The choice of ignorance has never been what’s best, and I refuse it now. The challenge is to find the right place to live and not move in panic, which could land me in a worse spot than I am now. So it’s keeping up the guard on the home front, while trying to find a better situation. The stress of that is enormous, but that’s what the next few months will be like, until I can pull it off. It’s hard to go house-hunting when it’s not safe to leave the current home unattended.

Exhausted and achy. The track I’m currently doing on the show spends most of its time on the raked stage, which is hell on the body. So a whole different set of things hurt than do on some of the other tracks. Fortunately, I’m more on my own with this track, which is helpful, since I haven’t been particularly brilliant company lately.

Shows were fine, but I was glad to get out. Metro North, as usual, was a hassle.

A friend and I went out to dinner between shows, sitting outside at New World Grill. It was fun, but I ate too much and waddled through the second show.

I read a fantastic book over the past couple of days: Changeling by Yasmine Galenorn. As a story, it’s excellent. Reading it for structure as a writer was also a wonderful lesson – the depth to which she’s built the world of the story, the minutiae she knows (but doesn’t tell every detail – you just know SHE knows it, and it comes through in the story). The pace, the characters, the plot, the detail, the overall arcs were all great. I had two minor disagreements with it: the first is that a character that’s a potential romantic rival for the protagonist is tossed in late in the book only to be killed off in the big confrontation – it doesn’t matter as much as it should because we haven’t had the chance to know the character. It’s one of my problems as a writer, which is why I probably picked up on it – I don’t want to kill characters about which I care. And, since this is a book in a series, I wanted to know a little more about what happened to this point. Some indications are well-sprinkled throughout the book, but all I needed were about three or four more to feel like I was up to speed. Those are minor, minor things, and I bet if I wasn’t a writer, I wouldn’t have even picked up on them.

Her fantastic structure and world building made me think about my own work. I’ve built my world well in Shallid, but I’m still struggling in Chasing the Changeling. The biggest weakness in that book is that I haven’t figured out the world and its mythologies yet, and I need to do that in order for it to work.

First thing I have to do today is to finish up the report for Confidential Job #1 and get that off – it’s due today. Then, it’s back to the page. I’m going to keep the admin work to a minimum, if I can, and get some creative work done. There’s a lot on my plate for the next few days, and I’m trying to keep it all in balance, while still paying the bills.

Off to the theatre for a show tonight, and then no theatre until next week – the weekend is all about the NHL Draft and the America’s Cup Challenge.

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Devon’s Random Newsletter

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GWEN FINNEGAN MYSTERIES

Archaeologist Dr. Gwen Finnegan is on the hunt for her lover’s killer. Shy historical researcher Justin Yates, frustrated with his failing relationship, jumps at the chance to join her on a real adventure through Europe, pursued by factions including Gwen’s ex-lover and nemesis, Karl, as they try to unspool fact from fiction in a multi-generational obsession with a statue of the goddess Medusa.
Buy links here.

Stuck in NYC when plans for their next expedition fall through, Gwen and Justin accept teaching jobs at different local universities. Adjusting to their day-to-day relationship, and juggling the academic and emotional demands of their students, they are embroiled in two different, disturbing, paranormal situations that have more than one unusual crossing point. Can they work together to find the answers? Or are new temptations too much to resist? For whom are they willing to put their lives on the line? Available on multiple digital channels here.

NAUTICAL NAMASTE MYSTERIES

SAVASANA AT SEA

Yoga instructor Sophie Batchelder jumps at the chance to teach on a cruise ship when she loses her job and her boyfriend dumps her in the same day. But when her boss is murdered, and the crew thinks she's taking over her predecessor's blackmail scheme, Sophie must figure out who the real killer is -- before he turns her into a corpse, too. A Not-Quite-Cozy Mystery.
Buy Links here.

COVENTINA CIRCLE ROMANTIC SUSPENSE

PLAYING THE ANGLES
Witchcraft, politics, and theatre collide as Morag D’Anneville and Secret Service agent Simon Keane fight to protect the Vice President of the United States -- or is it Morag who needs Simon’s protection more than the VP?
Buy links here.

THE SPIRIT REPOSITORY
Bonnie Chencko knows books change lives. But she never expected her life to change because she happened to duck into a small bookshop in Greenwich Village on a rainy late November night. She’s attracted to Rufus Van Dijk, the mysterious man who owns the bookshop in his ancestors’ building. A building filled with family ghosts, who are mysteriously disappearing. It’s up to Bonnie and her burgeoning Craft powers to rescue the spirits before their souls are lost forever. Buy Links here.

RELICS & REQUIEM
Amanda Breck’s complicated life gets more convoluted when she finds the body of Lena Morgan in Central Park, identical to Amanda’s dream. Detective Phineas Regan is one case away from retirement; the last thing he needs is a murder case tinged by the occult. The seeds of their attraction were planted months ago, when Phineas investigated an attack on Amanda’s friend Morag. Now, fate is determined to draw them close. But can they work together to stop a wily, vicious killer, or will the murderer destroy them both?
Buy link here.

THE JAIN LAZARUS ADVENTURES

Hex Breaker by Devon Ellington. A Jain Lazarus Adventure. Hex Breaker Jain Lazarus joins the crew of a cursed film, teaming with tough, practical Detective Wyatt East on an adventure fighting zombies, ceremonial magicians, the town wife-beater, the messenger of the gods, and their own pasts.
This series will re-release in 2020.
Visit the site for the Jain Lazarus adventures.</a

Full Circle: An Ars Concordia Anthology. Edited by Colin Galbraith. My story is “Pauvre Bob”, set at Arlington Race Track in Illinois is included in this wonderful collection of short stories and poetry. You can download it free here.